VA Disability Compensation or Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and the cost-of-living (COLA)

By: Dan Meyer

The office hours for the Big Stone County Veterans Service Office are 7:30 am – 4:00 pm Monday through Friday. My office phone number is (320) 839-6398.

A reminder. I will be on vacation visiting my children, grandchildren, and in-laws in Tampa and Pensacola, Florida from 18 – 26 December, 2010.

Over the past few weeks, I have been receiving inquiries concerning VA Disability Compensation or Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and the cost-of-living (COLA) adjustment to these benefits for FY2011.

The information regarding H.R. 4667, a bill to authorize increases in payments to recipients of Compensation and DIC, the VA clothing allowance, and certain wartime disability and compensation based on COLA increases provided to beneficiaries of Social Security.

The COLA allowance this bill provides is based on changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a calculation of inflation in the United States measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data accumulated to date indicates that it is unlikely that the CPI will increase by an amount necessary for veterans to receive a COLA increase for 2011.

The cold truth is this: neither H.R. 4667 nor any other piece of legislation likely will pass this year raising compensation benefits (hopefully I am wrong on this one). But the facts are the facts. Compensation and other monetary benefits paid by VA are tied to whatever COLA increases Social Security recipients receive. Since the CPI has not gone up this year, no one receiving compensation benefits will receive an increase in 2011.

In other news. Were you a member of the Minnesota Army National Guard or any other branch of service and have current hearing loss and/or ringing in the ears that you believed were caused by firing weapons, aircraft mechanic, driving heavy military vehicles, etc. during your military service? If this is you, contact me immediately and let’s talk about completing a VA disability compensation claim based on your military noise exposure.

Until next week, take care and “Fair Winds and Following Seas!”